Henry County-based manufacturing company Drake Extrusion Inc. will invest $6.9 million to expand its operations, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Monday. 

Drake Extrusion, a subsidiary of Sweden-based filament yarn and staple fiber manufacturer Duroc AB, plans to build an additional manufacturing facility in a vacant 120,000-square-foot building on Industrial Park Drive. The expansion will create 30 jobs. At its current facility, which opened in 1995, Drake Extrusion employs 187.

“Supporting existing businesses is more important now than ever as we focus on new hiring and investment to address the impacts of COVID-19 on our economy,” Northam said in a statement. “Drake Extrusion has a long history of success in Martinsville-Henry County, which has fostered an impressive business climate, infrastructure, and workforce for its growing cluster of manufacturers. We thank the company for its long-term commitment to Southern Virginia, and for choosing to expand and create new jobs amid these challenging times.”

At its new facility, Drake Extrusion plans to expand its market in polypropylene fibers, plastic-like materials that have a variety of applications. The company currently produces the material for use in the residential upholstery, home furnishings, automotive, floor covering and geotextile industries.

“We are pleased to continue Drake’s growth in Martinsville-Henry County,” Drake Extrusion CEO John Parkinson said in a statement. “We continue to grow our business here in large part due to our tremendous workforce and the strong support we receive from our local governments. We also appreciate the support we are receiving from the commonwealth of Virginia, especially the opportunity to take advantage of the new Virginia Talent Accelerator Program.”

The Virginia Talent Accelerator Program, a workforce initiative created by the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP), provides recruitment and training services to startup and expanding companies. VEDP partners with the Virginia Community College System for recruitment and training in the program.

VEDP worked with Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corp. to secure the project, and Northam approved a $90,000 grant from the Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund to help Henry County with the project. Drake Extrusion can also receive state benefits from the Virginia Enterprise Zone program.

Henry County has invested more than $342,000 in the project thus far.

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